DAVID MURDOCK: Front Porch tales, Part 8

Published: Sunday, February 17, 2013 at 6:01 a.m.

Last Modified: Friday, February 15, 2013 at 4:50 p.m.

I have not given an update from the Front Porch in a long time. So, here goes.

I’m going to extend this one a little bit into the yard. Three interesting sights have greeted me on the porch in the last few weeks.

First, there was a conjunction of the moon and the planet Jupiter back on Jan. 21. I went out right after dark to view it. I have to say, I’m often underwhelmed by celestial highlights. This time, the view was absolutely extraordinary. The moon and Jupiter were so close together that I could obscure them with my hand.

I got a pair of powerful binoculars for Christmas — not so big that a tripod is needed, but bigger than anything I have — and I put them to good use that night. In the glasses, I could easily see the big, fat crescent of the moon and Jupiter without moving. The most extraordinary thing is that I also could see the four largest moons of Jupiter, too. Really thrilling sight.

I hauled out my telescope to see if the view was better. It was not. I had to keep moving the telescope back and forth to see both of my targets, so it wasn’t nearly as gratifying, even though the magnification was better through the telescope.

It just goes to show, good binoculars beat an inexpensive telescope any day. One of these days, I’m going to save enough money to buy a really powerful telescope, but my new binoculars easily outperform my small telescope for general sky sweeping. Plus, I can use them on birds and other wildlife. The telescope, like most astronomical models, renders the image upside down, making it useless for terrestrial objects.

Next on my list — that fog we had a couple of weeks ago. We don’t get really thick fog like some places, but it was bad enough that morning for a “dense fog” warning.

I watched the fog rise up from the mountain from my front porch that morning and drove through it on my way to work.

There’s something about that view of the mountain when it’s wreathed in fog. It is impossible to tell where the mountaintop ends and the sky starts. Normally, the trees lining the top of the mountain stand out in stark relief, even against the grayest sky. A clear boundary always exists between earth and sky.

That morning, however, the fog rose up from the trees and melted into the sky. I like to watch the fog slowly roll through the pines and, unhindered and unvexed by any wind, slowly make its way into the heavens. I find that scene comforting, although I admit I really don’t like to drive through the same scene on my way to work. Fog is best enjoyed from the porch, not the car.

Last on my list, I should have known something was up a few days ago when the cat got “agitated.” My cat lives indoors only, but he keeps close tabs on the goings-on outside from his window perch. He gets excited over birds at the feeders, but he only gets agitated when there’s something outside I need to see.

One late afternoon, I was sitting in my recliner reading. Normally, the cat respects that and doesn’t disturb me. He started running around the house and making that little deep-throated meow he makes when he’s worked up — almost like a “throat bark,” for lack of a better phrase.

I slipped on my shoes and sneaked outside while he was standing on the window perch and gazing off into the distance. I looked over in the general direction he was surveying and saw immediately what had worked him into a lather. A good size coyote was loping across my neighbor’s hay field.

I don’t care for coyotes, but they’ve become part of the wildlife around here. This one was galumphing along in that gait coyotes use when they’re in no particular hurry, but they don’t want to dawdle, either.

Then, an unusual thing happened — another coyote went trailing along out of the hedges after the first one. Same size, same gait. They could’ve been twins. Before I knew it, they’d disappeared into the tree line. I see single, solitary coyotes somewhat often out here, and I have heard a whole pack of them over by the creek on many occasions. However, that was the first time I’ve seen more than one at once.

That’s this week’s report from the Front Porch. More as things develop.

David Murdock is an English instructor at Gadsden State Community College. He can be contacted at murdockcolumn@yahoo.com

<p>I have not given an update from the Front Porch in a long time. So, here goes.</p><p>I'm going to extend this one a little bit into the yard. Three interesting sights have greeted me on the porch in the last few weeks.</p><p>First, there was a conjunction of the moon and the planet Jupiter back on Jan. 21. I went out right after dark to view it. I have to say, I'm often underwhelmed by celestial highlights. This time, the view was absolutely extraordinary. The moon and Jupiter were so close together that I could obscure them with my hand.</p><p>I got a pair of powerful binoculars for Christmas — not so big that a tripod is needed, but bigger than anything I have — and I put them to good use that night. In the glasses, I could easily see the big, fat crescent of the moon and Jupiter without moving. The most extraordinary thing is that I also could see the four largest moons of Jupiter, too. Really thrilling sight.</p><p>I hauled out my telescope to see if the view was better. It was not. I had to keep moving the telescope back and forth to see both of my targets, so it wasn't nearly as gratifying, even though the magnification was better through the telescope.</p><p>It just goes to show, good binoculars beat an inexpensive telescope any day. One of these days, I'm going to save enough money to buy a really powerful telescope, but my new binoculars easily outperform my small telescope for general sky sweeping. Plus, I can use them on birds and other wildlife. The telescope, like most astronomical models, renders the image upside down, making it useless for terrestrial objects.</p><p>Next on my list — that fog we had a couple of weeks ago. We don't get really thick fog like some places, but it was bad enough that morning for a “dense fog” warning.</p><p>I watched the fog rise up from the mountain from my front porch that morning and drove through it on my way to work.</p><p>There's something about that view of the mountain when it's wreathed in fog. It is impossible to tell where the mountaintop ends and the sky starts. Normally, the trees lining the top of the mountain stand out in stark relief, even against the grayest sky. A clear boundary always exists between earth and sky.</p><p>That morning, however, the fog rose up from the trees and melted into the sky. I like to watch the fog slowly roll through the pines and, unhindered and unvexed by any wind, slowly make its way into the heavens. I find that scene comforting, although I admit I really don't like to drive through the same scene on my way to work. Fog is best enjoyed from the porch, not the car.</p><p>Last on my list, I should have known something was up a few days ago when the cat got “agitated.” My cat lives indoors only, but he keeps close tabs on the goings-on outside from his window perch. He gets excited over birds at the feeders, but he only gets agitated when there's something outside I need to see.</p><p>One late afternoon, I was sitting in my recliner reading. Normally, the cat respects that and doesn't disturb me. He started running around the house and making that little deep-throated meow he makes when he's worked up — almost like a “throat bark,” for lack of a better phrase.</p><p>I slipped on my shoes and sneaked outside while he was standing on the window perch and gazing off into the distance. I looked over in the general direction he was surveying and saw immediately what had worked him into a lather. A good size coyote was loping across my neighbor's hay field.</p><p>I don't care for coyotes, but they've become part of the wildlife around here. This one was galumphing along in that gait coyotes use when they're in no particular hurry, but they don't want to dawdle, either.</p><p>Then, an unusual thing happened — another coyote went trailing along out of the hedges after the first one. Same size, same gait. They could've been twins. Before I knew it, they'd disappeared into the tree line. I see single, solitary coyotes somewhat often out here, and I have heard a whole pack of them over by the creek on many occasions. However, that was the first time I've seen more than one at once.</p><p>That's this week's report from the Front Porch. More as things develop.</p>
<p class="italic font120">David Murdock is an English instructor at Gadsden State Community College. He can be contacted at murdockcolumn@yahoo.com</p>